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Rockies add three players to 40-man roster

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DENVER – The Colorado Rockies announced today that the club has added right-handed pitcher Joe Gardner, infielder Cristhian Adames and outfielder Tim Wheeler to the 40-man roster. Additionally, Colorado has outrighted outfielder Andrew Brown and infielder/outfielder Matt McBride off the 40-man and assigned them to Triple-A Colorado Springs.

Gardner, 24, spent his entire 2012 season at Double-A Tulsa working as a starter and reliever. In 28 games/23 starts for the Drillers, Gardner went 8-8 with a 3.97 ERA (138.1 ip, 61 er), 39 walks and 99 strikeouts. Gardner was originally acquired by Colorado along with pitchers Drew Pomeranz and Alex White and infielder/outfielder Matt McBride from Cleveland on July 31, 2011 in exchange for Ubaldo Jimenez. The 6-foot-4 right-hander was originally selected by Cleveland in the third round of the 2009 First-Year Player Draft from UC Santa Barbara. In 34 games since the Rockies acquired him, all at Double-A, Gardner is 11-11 with a 3.66 ERA (174.2 ip, 71 er). Gardner was rated the Rockies 25th best prospect by Baseball America prior to the 2012 season.

Adames, 21, spent his entire 2012 season with High-A Modesto as the club’s regular shortstop. In 115 games for the Nuts, Adames batted .280 (117-for-418) with 21 doubles, 7 triples, 2 home runs, 54 RBI and 59 runs scored. The Santo Domingo, D.R. native was originally signed by Colorado as a non-drafted free agent on Septmeber 13, 2007. The 6-foot, 160-pound switch-hitter batted .286 (3-for-105) from the right side and .278 (87-for-313) from the left side in 2012. Adames was rated the Rockies 20th-best prospect by Baseball America prior to the 2012 season.

Wheeler, 24, spent the entire 2012 season at Triple-A Colorado Springs as one of the club’s regular outfielders. In 92 games for the Sky Sox, his first experience at Triple-A, Wheeler batted .303 (115-for-379) with 27 doubles, 4 triples, 2 home runs, 37 RBI and 67 runs. Wheeler, who bats left and throws right, was originally selected by Colorado in the first round (32nd overall) of the 2009 First-Year Player Draft out of Sacramento State Univeristy. In 2011, Wheeler set a new Rockies Double-A record by connecting on 33 home runs for the Tulsa Drillers. He was named the Rockies 5th-best prospect by Baseball America prior to the 2012 season.

Brown, 28, played in 46 games for the Rockies in 2012 and batted .232 (26-for-112) with 7 doubles, 5 home runs and 11 RBI. He spent the remainder of 2012 season at Triple-A Colorado Springs where he was a Mid-Season and Post-Season All-Star. In 100 games for the Sky Sox he batted .308 (120-for-390) with 33 doubles, 4 triples, 24 home runs and 98 RBI. The right-handed hitter has played in 57 career Major League games with St. Louis (2011) and Colorado. He owns a .224 (30-for-134) batting average with 8 doubles, 5 home runs and 14 RBI in the Majors.

McBride, 27, made his Major League debut in 2012 with Colorado, appearing in 31 games and batting .205 (16-for-78) with 2 doubles, 2 home runs and 11 RBI. McBride, who was acquired along with pitchers Joe Gardner, Drew Pomeranz and Alex White from Cleveland on July 31, 2011 in exchange for Ubaldo Jimenez, spent the remainder of his season at Triple-A. The right-handed hitter batted .344 (151-for-439) with 42 doubles, 6 triples, 10 home runs and 87 RBI in 108 games for the Sky Sox and was named to Pacific Coast League Mid-Season and Post-Season All-Star teams.